Journal Archives

This Guy had made some epic bad business moves... But you've got to admit... This is a pretty good resignation letter:

People of Groupon,

After four and a half intense and wonderful years as CEO of Groupon, Iíve decided that Iíd like to spend more time with my family. Just kidding Ė I was fired today. If youíre wondering whyÖ you havenít been paying attention. From controversial metrics in our S1 to our material weakness to two quarters of missing our own expectations and a stock price thatís hovering around one quarter of our listing price, the events of the last year and a half speak for themselves. As CEO, I am accountable.

You are doing amazing things at Groupon, and you deserve the outside world to give you a second chance. Iím getting in the way of that. A fresh CEO earns you that chance. The board is aligned behind the strategy weíve shared over the last few months, and Iíve never seen you working together more effectively as a global company Ė itís time to give Groupon a relief valve from the public noise.

For those who are concerned about me, please donít be ó I love Groupon, and Iím terribly proud of what weíve created. Iím OK with having failed at this part of the journey. If Groupon was Battletoads, it would be like I made it all the way to the Terra Tubes without dying on my first ever play through. I am so lucky to have had the opportunity to take the company this far with all of you. Iíll now take some time to decompress (FYI Iím looking for a good fat camp to lose my Groupon 40, if anyone has a suggestion), and then maybe Iíll figure out how to channel this experience into something productive.

If thereís one piece of wisdom that this simple pilgrim would like to impart upon you: have the courage to start with the customer. My biggest regrets are the moments that I let a lack of data override my intuition on whatís best for our customers. This leadership change gives you some breathing room to break bad habits and deliver sustainable customer happiness Ė donít waste the opportunity!

Early spring and baby bear is getting his first climbing lesson. Momma bear wants him to learn as quickly as possible so she can send him scurrying up the tree at any sign of perceived danger or when she wants to go and forage for food.

photograph courtesy of: North American Bear Center/Wildlife Research Institute.

Scientists have unearthed extraordinarily preserved fossils of a 520-million-year-old sea creature, one of the earliest animal fossils ever found, according to a new study.

The fossilized animal, an arthropod called a fuxhianhuiid, has primitive limbs under its head, as well as the earliest example of a nervous system that extended past the head. The primitive creature may have used the limbs to push food into its mouth as it crept across the seafloor. The limbs may shed light on the evolutionary history of arthropods, which include crustaceans and insects.

"Since biologists rely heavily on organization of head appendages to classify arthropod groups, such as insects and spiders, our study provides a crucial reference point for reconstructing the evolutionary history and relationships of the most diverse and abundant animals on Earth," said study co-author Javier Ortega-HernŠndez, an earth scientist at the University of Cambridge, in a statement.

"This is as early as we can currently see into arthropod limb development."

The findings were published Wednesday in the journal Nature.

The fuxhianhuiid lived nearly 50 million years before animals first emerged from the sea onto land, during the early part of the Cambrian explosion, when simple multicellular organisms rapidly evolved into complex sea life.

Well-wishers from around the world are opening their wallets to a homeless man who returned a diamond engagement ring to its rightful owner, after she accidentally dropped it in his donation cup.

"I actually feel like I'm especially lucky to have this ring now. I loved it before. I loved it so much, but I love it so much more now. I feel like it has such great karma," Sarah Darling told CNN's "Starting Point with Soledad O'Brien."

Darling who is from Kansas City, Missouri, said she was devastated when she realized she'd lost her ring.

She almost never takes it off, but it was giving her a bit of a rash so she did, zipping it in her coin purse for safe keeping.

Later, she absentmindedly emptied the contents of that purse into the collection cup of Billy Ray Harris, who is homeless and lives under a bridge in Darling's hometown.
It wasn't until the next day that she realized her ring was gone.

"It was horrible. It was such a feeling of loss," Darling said. "It meant so much to me beyond just the financial value."

She went back to look for Harris, but he was gone. She returned the next day and found him.

"I asked him ... 'I don't know if you remember me, but I think I gave you something that's very precious to me,' and he says, 'Was it a ring? Yeah, I have it, I kept it for you,'" Darling said.

She was floored

More www.cnn.com/2013/02/22/us/missouri-diamond-ring-returned/index.html?hpt=hp_c1

We haven't heard much about hunting during the ongoing debate over gun violence. Perhaps that's because hunting is widely seen as a traditional, enjoyable, and safe pastime, even among the majority of Americans who have never donned camo and hunting orange. Or perhaps that's because most hunters don't need AR-15s or high-capacity magazines. Or perhaps it's because hunters are a minority among the 80 million or so gun-owning Americans.

How many hunters are there? In 2011, according to the US Fish and Wildlife Service (PDF), 15.7 million Americans older than six went hunting. That's nearly 29 million less than went fishing, and 3 million less than went out to watch birds. Back in 1955, about 10 percent of Americans hunted; today it's around 6 percent. Overall, the number of hunters began to dip in the '90s but has slowly increased in the past few years.

Who hunts? The FWS's latest survey finds that hunters are 89 percent male and 94 percent white. More than half are 45 or older. Nearly 60 percent live in small metropolitan areas or rural areas. Similarly, about 80 percent of all gun owners are men, and they have been getting older as their numbers have fallen. (Around 35 percent of Americans say they own a gun.) A recent National Rifle Association (NRA) survey of its members found that nearly half identify as hunters and that they, like hunters in general, are largely from small towns and rural areas.

What do they hunt? More than 80 percent of hunters go after big game such as deer and elk. About 4.5 million hunt small game such as squirrels; 2.6 million hunt ducks and other birds, and 2.2 million go after other animals like feral pigs.

A new North Carolina driver's license set to be issued to some illegal immigrants has a bright pink stripe and the bold words "NO LAWFUL STATUS," raising concerns about whether the design will brand those who show it.

The North Carolina Division of Motor Vehicles announced last week they would begin issuing the licenses March 25 following a lengthy legal review. The Obama administration's Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program grants valid federal work permits to qualified applicants brought to the U.S. as children without legal authorization.

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"A lot of us are just scared," said Marroguin, who came to the U.S. from Mexico when she was 15. "We just want to be able to get a job and drive to work. Having that license is just going to show everybody you're here illegally, just buying a beer or writing a check. You don't know how people might react."

The American Civil Liberties Union of North Carolina also takes issue with the designation.

"North Carolina should not be making it harder for aspiring citizens to integrate and contribute to our communities by branding them with a second-class driver's license," said ACLU attorney Raul Pinto. "There is simply no reason for officials to stigmatize people who are in the U.S. legally with an unnecessary marker that could lead to harassment, confusion, and racial profiling."

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The office of the state's Democratic attorney general in an opinion last month said that under federal law, DACA participants have a "legal presence," even if they do not have "lawful status." Therefore, state law requires that DACA participants be granted licenses. Republican Gov. Pat McCrory's administration of agreed, announcing last week the DMV would begin issuing the licenses.

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Jose Rico, a 23-year-old Raleigh resident from Mexico who has already been issued DACA work permit, said he plans to be in line at the DMV on March 25 to get a license, even if it's pink. He will be extremely disappointed if state legislators pass a bill delaying or a denying his ability to do so.

"I don't know what's wrong with these people, what they're so afraid of people like me," said Rico, who has lived in the U.S. since he was 13. "It's so frustrating. I passed a federal background check, done everything right by the book. I'm paying taxes. I mean, we're just kids trying to go to school."